Semiconductor device and method of forming inductor over insulating material filled trench in substrate

ABSTRACT

A semiconductor device has a trench formed in a substrate. The trench has tapered sidewalls and depth of 10-120 micrometers. A first insulating layer is conformally applied over the substrate and into the trench. An insulating material, such as polymer, is deposited over the first insulating layer in the trench. A first conductive layer is formed over the insulating material. A second insulating layer is formed over the first insulating layer and first conductive layer. A second conductive layer is formed over the second insulating layer and electrically contacts the first conductive layer. The first and second conductive layers are isolated from the substrate by the insulating material in the trench. A third insulating layer is formed over the second insulating layer and second conductive layer. The first and second conductive layers are coiled over the substrate to exhibit inductive properties.

CLAIM TO DOMESTIC PRIORITY

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 12/493,049, now abandoned, filed Jun. 26, 2009, whichapplication is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to semiconductor devices and,more particularly, to a semiconductor device and method of forming aninductor over an insulating material filled trench in a substrate.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Semiconductor devices are commonly found in modern electronic products.Semiconductor devices vary in the number and density of electricalcomponents. Discrete semiconductor devices generally contain one type ofelectrical component, e.g., light emitting diode (LED), small signaltransistor, resistor, capacitor, inductor, and power metal oxidesemiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET). Integrated semiconductordevices typically contain hundreds to millions of electrical components.Examples of integrated semiconductor devices include microcontrollers,microprocessors, charged-coupled devices (CCDs), solar cells, anddigital micro-mirror devices (DMDs).

Semiconductor devices perform a wide range of functions such ashigh-speed calculations, transmitting and receiving electromagneticsignals, controlling electronic devices, transforming sunlight toelectricity, and creating visual projections for television displays.Semiconductor devices are found in the fields of entertainment,communications, power conversion, networks, computers, and consumerproducts. Semiconductor devices are also found in military applications,aviation, automotive, industrial controllers, and office equipment.

Semiconductor devices exploit the electrical properties of semiconductormaterials. The atomic structure of semiconductor material allows itselectrical conductivity to be manipulated by the application of anelectric field or through the process of doping. Doping introducesimpurities into the semiconductor material to manipulate and control theconductivity of the semiconductor device.

A semiconductor device contains active and passive electricalstructures. Active structures, including bipolar and field effecttransistors, control the flow of electrical current. By varying levelsof doping and application of an electric field or base current, thetransistor either promotes or restricts the flow of electrical current.Passive structures, including resistors, capacitors, and inductors,create a relationship between voltage and current necessary to perform avariety of electrical functions. The passive and active structures areelectrically connected to form circuits, which enable the semiconductordevice to perform high-speed calculations and other useful functions.

Semiconductor devices are generally manufactured using two complexmanufacturing processes, i.e., front-end manufacturing, and back-endmanufacturing, each involving potentially hundreds of steps. Front-endmanufacturing involves the formation of a plurality of die on thesurface of a semiconductor wafer. Each die is typically identical andcontains circuits formed by electrically connecting active and passivecomponents. Back-end manufacturing involves singulating individual diefrom the finished wafer and packaging the die to provide structuralsupport and environmental isolation.

One goal of semiconductor manufacturing is to produce smallersemiconductor devices. Smaller devices typically consume less power,have higher performance, and can be produced more efficiently. Inaddition, smaller semiconductor devices have a smaller footprint, whichis desirable for smaller end products. A smaller die size may beachieved by improvements in the front-end process resulting in die withsmaller, higher density active and passive components. Back-endprocesses may result in semiconductor device packages with a smallerfootprint by improvements in electrical interconnection and packagingmaterials.

Another goal of semiconductor manufacturing is to produce higherperformance semiconductor devices. An increase in device performance canbe accomplished by forming active components that are capable ofoperating at higher speeds. In high frequency applications, such asradio frequency (RF) wireless communications, integrated passive devices(IPDs) are often contained within the semiconductor device. Examples ofIPDs include resistors, capacitors, and inductors. A typical RF systemrequires multiple IPDs in one or more semiconductor packages to performthe necessary electrical functions.

The inductors are typically formed as a coiled conductive layer over asurface of the substrate. The inductor must have a high Q factor foroptimal RF performance. However, the Q factor can be reduced byinductive coupling losses between the inductor and substrate. Tomaintain a high Q inductor, a high resistivity substrate, in the rangeof 1000-3000 ohm-cm, is commonly used. Unfortunately, the highresistivity substrate adds excessive costs to the manufacturing process.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A need exists for a high Q inductor on a low cost substrate.Accordingly, in one embodiment, the present invention is a method ofmaking a semiconductor device comprising the steps of providing asubstrate, forming a trench in the substrate to follow a coiled path,conformally applying a first insulating layer into the trench,depositing an insulating material over the first insulating layer tofill the trench, forming a first conductive layer over the insulatingmaterial, and forming a second conductive layer over the firstconductive layer as a coil to exhibit an inductive property. Theinsulating material in the trench isolates the first conductive layerand second conductive layer from the substrate.

In another embodiment, the present invention is a method of making asemiconductor device comprising the steps of providing a substrate,forming a trench in the substrate to follow a coiled path, conformallyapplying a first insulating layer into the trench, depositing aninsulating material over the first insulating layer to fill the trench,and forming a first conductive layer over the insulating material as acoil to exhibit an inductive property.

In another embodiment, the present invention is a method of making asemiconductor device comprising the steps of providing a substrateincluding a trench formed in the substrate to follow a coiled path,depositing an insulating material in the trench, and forming a firstconductive layer over the insulating material as a coil to exhibit aninductive property.

In another embodiment, the present invention is a semiconductor devicecomprising a substrate including a trench formed in the substrate tofollow a coiled path. An insulating material is deposited in the trench.A first conductive layer is formed over the insulating material as acoil to exhibit an inductive property.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a PCB with different types of packages mounted to itssurface;

FIGS. 2a-2c illustrate further detail of the semiconductor packagesmounted to the PCB;

FIGS. 3a-3g illustrate a process of forming an inductor over aninsulating material filled trench in a substrate; and

FIGS. 4a-4b illustrate the inductor formed over the insulating materialfilled trench in the substrate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is described in one or more embodiments in thefollowing description with reference to the figures, in which likenumerals represent the same or similar elements. While the invention isdescribed in terms of the best mode for achieving the invention'sobjectives, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that itis intended to cover alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as maybe included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined bythe appended claims and their equivalents as supported by the followingdisclosure and drawings.

Semiconductor devices are generally manufactured using two complexmanufacturing processes: front-end manufacturing and back-endmanufacturing. Front-end manufacturing involves the formation of aplurality of die on the surface of a semiconductor wafer. Each die onthe wafer contains active and passive electrical components, which areelectrically connected to form functional electrical circuits. Activeelectrical components, such as transistors and diodes, have the abilityto control the flow of electrical current. Passive electricalcomponents, such as capacitors, inductors, resistors, and transformers,create a relationship between voltage and current necessary to performelectrical circuit functions.

Passive and active components are formed over the surface of thesemiconductor wafer by a series of process steps including doping,deposition, photolithography, etching, and planarization. Dopingintroduces impurities into the semiconductor material by techniques suchas ion implantation or thermal diffusion. The doping process modifiesthe electrical conductivity of semiconductor material in active devices,transforming the semiconductor material into an insulator, conductor, ordynamically changing the semiconductor material conductivity in responseto an electric field or base current. Transistors contain regions ofvarying types and degrees of doping arranged as necessary to enable thetransistor to promote or restrict the flow of electrical current uponthe application of the electric field or base current.

Active and passive components are formed by layers of materials withdifferent electrical properties. The layers can be formed by a varietyof deposition techniques determined in part by the type of materialbeing deposited. For example, thin film deposition may involve chemicalvapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), electrolyticplating, and electroless plating processes. Each layer is generallypatterned to form portions of active components, passive components, orelectrical connections between components.

The layers can be patterned using photolithography, which involves thedeposition of light sensitive material, e.g., photoresist, over thelayer to be patterned. A pattern is transferred from a photomask to thephotoresist using light. The portion of the photoresist patternsubjected to light is removed using a solvent, exposing portions of theunderlying layer to be patterned. The remainder of the photoresist isremoved, leaving behind a patterned layer. Alternatively, some types ofmaterials are patterned by directly depositing the material into theareas or voids formed by a previous deposition/etch process usingtechniques such as electroless and electrolytic plating.

Depositing a thin film of material over an existing pattern canexaggerate the underlying pattern and create a non-uniformly flatsurface. A uniformly flat surface is required to produce smaller andmore densely packed active and passive components. Planarization can beused to remove material from the surface of the wafer and produce auniformly flat surface. Planarization involves polishing the surface ofthe wafer with a polishing pad. An abrasive material and corrosivechemical are added to the surface of the wafer during polishing. Thecombined mechanical action of the abrasive and corrosive action of thechemical removes any irregular topography, resulting in a uniformly flatsurface.

Back-end manufacturing refers to cutting or singulating the finishedwafer into the individual die and then packaging the die for structuralsupport and environmental isolation. To singulate the die, the wafer isscored and broken along non-functional regions of the wafer called sawstreets or scribes. The wafer is singulated using a laser cutting toolor saw blade. After singulation, the individual die are mounted to apackage substrate that includes pins or contact pads for interconnectionwith other system components. Contact pads formed over the semiconductordie are then connected to contact pads within the package. Theelectrical connections can be made with solder bumps, stud bumps,conductive paste, or wirebonds. An encapsulant or other molding materialis deposited over the package to provide physical support and electricalisolation. The finished package is then inserted into an electricalsystem and the functionality of the semiconductor device is madeavailable to the other system components.

FIG. 1 illustrates electronic device 50 having a chip carrier substrateor printed circuit board (PCB) 52 with a plurality of semiconductorpackages mounted on its surface. Electronic device 50 may have one typeof semiconductor package, or multiple types of semiconductor packages,depending on the application. The different types of semiconductorpackages are shown in FIG. 1 for purposes of illustration.

Electronic device 50 may be a stand-alone system that uses thesemiconductor packages to perform one or more electrical functions.Alternatively, electronic device 50 may be a subcomponent of a largersystem. For example, electronic device 50 may be a graphics card,network interface card, or other signal processing card that can beinserted into a computer. The semiconductor package can includemicroprocessors, memories, application specific integrated circuits(ASIC), logic circuits, analog circuits, RF circuits, discrete devices,or other semiconductor die or electrical components.

In FIG. 1, PCB 52 provides a general substrate for structural supportand electrical interconnect of the semiconductor packages mounted on thePCB. Conductive signal traces 54 are formed over a surface or withinlayers of PCB 52 using evaporation, electrolytic plating, electrolessplating, screen printing, or other suitable metal deposition process.Signal traces 54 provide for electrical communication between each ofthe semiconductor packages, mounted components, and other externalsystem components. Traces 54 also provide power and ground connectionsto each of the semiconductor packages.

In some embodiments, a semiconductor device has two packaging levels.First level packaging is a technique for mechanically and electricallyattaching the semiconductor die to an intermediate carrier. Second levelpackaging involves mechanically and electrically attaching theintermediate carrier to the PCB. In other embodiments, a semiconductordevice may only have the first level packaging where the die ismechanically and electrically mounted directly to the PCB.

For the purpose of illustration, several types of first level packaging,including wire bond package 56 and flip chip 58, are shown on PCB 52.Additionally, several types of second level packaging, including ballgrid array (BGA) 60, bump chip carrier (BCC) 62, dual in-line package(DIP) 64, land grid array (LGA) 66, multi-chip module (MCM) 68, quadflat non-leaded package (QFN) 70, and quad flat package 72, are shownmounted on PCB 52. Depending upon the system requirements, anycombination of semiconductor packages, configured with any combinationof first and second level packaging styles, as well as other electroniccomponents, can be connected to PCB 52. In some embodiments, electronicdevice 50 includes a single attached semiconductor package, while otherembodiments call for multiple interconnected packages. By combining oneor more semiconductor packages over a single substrate, manufacturerscan incorporate pre-made components into electronic devices and systems.Because the semiconductor packages include sophisticated functionality,electronic devices can be manufactured using cheaper components and astreamlined manufacturing process. The resulting devices are less likelyto fail and less expensive to manufacture resulting in a lower cost forconsumers.

FIGS. 2a-2c show exemplary semiconductor packages. FIG. 2a illustratesfurther detail of DIP 64 mounted on PCB 52. Semiconductor die 74includes an active region containing analog or digital circuitsimplemented as active devices, passive devices, conductive layers, anddielectric layers formed within the die and are electricallyinterconnected according to the electrical design of the die. Forexample, the circuit may include one or more transistors, diodes,inductors, capacitors, resistors, and other circuit elements formedwithin the active region of semiconductor die 74. Contact pads 76 areone or more layers of conductive material, such as aluminum (Al), copper(Cu), tin (Sn), nickel (Ni), gold (Au), or silver (Ag), and areelectrically connected to the circuit elements formed withinsemiconductor die 74. During assembly of DIP 64, semiconductor die 74 ismounted to an intermediate carrier 78 using a gold-silicon eutecticlayer or adhesive material such as thermal epoxy. The package bodyincludes an insulative packaging material such as polymer or ceramic.Conductor leads 80 and wire bonds 82 provide electrical interconnectbetween semiconductor die 74 and PCB 52. Encapsulant 84 is depositedover the package for environmental protection by preventing moisture andparticles from entering the package and contaminating die 74 or wirebonds 82.

FIG. 2b illustrates further detail of BCC 62 mounted on PCB 52.Semiconductor die 88 is mounted over carrier 90 using an underfill orepoxy-resin adhesive material 92. Wire bonds 94 provide first levelpacking interconnect between contact pads 96 and 98. Molding compound orencapsulant 100 is deposited over semiconductor die 88 and wire bonds 94to provide physical support and electrical isolation for the device.Contact pads 102 are formed over a surface of PCB 52 using a suitablemetal deposition such electrolytic plating or electroless plating toprevent oxidation. Contact pads 102 are electrically connected to one ormore conductive signal traces 54 in PCB 52. Bumps 104 are formed betweencontact pads 98 of BCC 62 and contact pads 102 of PCB 52.

In FIG. 2c , semiconductor die 58 is mounted face down to intermediatecarrier 106 with a flip chip style first level packaging. Active region108 of semiconductor die 58 contains analog or digital circuitsimplemented as active devices, passive devices, conductive layers, anddielectric layers formed according to the electrical design of the die.For example, the circuit may include one or more transistors, diodes,inductors, capacitors, resistors, and other circuit elements withinactive region 108. Semiconductor die 58 is electrically and mechanicallyconnected to carrier 106 through bumps 110.

BGA 60 is electrically and mechanically connected to PCB 52 with a BGAstyle second level packaging using bumps 112. Semiconductor die 58 iselectrically connected to conductive signal traces 54 in PCB 52 throughbumps 110, signal lines 114, and bumps 112. A molding compound orencapsulant 116 is deposited over semiconductor die 58 and carrier 106to provide physical support and electrical isolation for the device. Theflip chip semiconductor device provides a short electrical conductionpath from the active devices on semiconductor die 58 to conductiontracks on PCB 52 in order to reduce signal propagation distance, lowercapacitance, and improve overall circuit performance. In anotherembodiment, the semiconductor die 58 can be mechanically andelectrically connected directly to PCB 52 using flip chip style firstlevel packaging without intermediate carrier 106.

FIG. 3a shows a substrate or wafer 120 made with a semiconductor basematerial such as silicon, germanium, gallium arsenide, indium phosphide,or silicon carbide. The semiconductor base material has a lowresistivity, in the range of 10-30 ohm-cm. The low resistivity substrate120 is considered a low-cost component in the manufacturing process. Thethickness of substrate 120 is about 635 micrometers (μm), prior to waferback grinding or other thinning process. A plurality of semiconductordie can be formed over or mounted to substrate 120 using semiconductormanufacturing processes as described above. Each semiconductor die hasactive and passive devices, conductive layers, and dielectric layersformed in active surface 122 according to the electrical design of thedie. In one embodiment, the semiconductor die contains baseband analogcircuits or digital circuits, such as digital signal processor (DSP),ASIC, memory, or other signal processing circuit.

The semiconductor die may also contain IPD, such as inductors,capacitors, and resistors, for RF signal processing. The IPDs providethe electrical characteristics needed for high frequency applications,such as resonators, high-pass filters, low-pass filters, band-passfilters, symmetric Hi-Q resonant transformers, matching networks, andtuning capacitors. The IPDs can be used as front-end wireless RFcomponents, which can be positioned between the antenna and transceiver.The IPD inductor can be a hi-Q balun, transformer, or coil, operating upto 100 Gigahertz. In some applications, multiple baluns are formed overa same substrate, allowing multi-band operation. For example, two ormore baluns are used in a quad-band for mobile phones or other GSMcommunications, each balun dedicated for a frequency band of operationof the quad-band device. A typical RF system requires multiple IPDs andother high frequency circuits in one or more semiconductor packages toperform the necessary electrical functions.

A portion of substrate 120 is removed by an etching process to formtrench 124. In one embodiment, trench 124 has tapered sidewalls anddepth of 10-120 μm.

A dielectric or insulating layer 126 is conformally applied oversubstrate 100 and into trench 124, as shown in FIG. 3 b. The insulatinglayer 126 can be one or more layers of silicon dioxide (SiO2), siliconnitride (Si3N4), silicon oxynitride (SiON), tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5),zircon (ZrO2), aluminum oxide (Al2O3), polyimide, benzocyclobutene(BCB), polybenzoxazoles (PBO), or other material having suitableelectrical insulating properties. The insulating layer 126 is patternedor blanket deposited using PVD, CVD, printing, spin coating, sinteringwith curing, or thermal oxidation to a thickness of 0.01 μm.

In FIG. 3c , an insulating material 128 is formed over insulating layer126 and into trench 124. The insulating material 128 can be one or morelayers of polyimide, BCB, PBO, or other polymer material applied usinglow temperature deposition, e.g., in the range of 250-360° C. In oneembodiment, insulating material 128 has a low coefficient of thermalexpansion (CTE) of 25-60, low loss tangent of 0.01, and low dielectricconstant (k) value of 2.9.

In FIG. 3d , an electrically conductive layer 130 is formed overinsulating material 128 using patterning with PVD, CVD, sputtering,electrolytic plating, electroless plating process, or other suitablemetal deposition process. Conductive layer 130 can be one or more layersof Al, Cu, Sn, Ni, Au, Ag, or other suitable electrically conductivematerial.

In FIG. 3e , a passivation or insulating layer 132 is conformallyapplied over insulating layer 126, insulating material 128, andconductive layer 130. The insulating layer 132 can be one or more layersof SiO2, Si3N4, SiON, Ta2O5, Al2O3, or other material having suitableinsulating and structural properties. The insulating layer 132 ispatterned or blanket deposited using PVD, CVD, printing, spin coating,sintering with curing, or thermal oxidation. A portion of insulatinglayer 132 is removed by an etching process to expose conductive layer130.

In FIG. 3f , an electrically conductive layer 134 is formed overinsulating layer 132 using patterning with PVD, CVD, sputtering,electrolytic plating, electroless plating process, or other suitablemetal deposition process. Conductive layer 134 can be one or more layersof Al, Cu, Sn, Ni, Au, Ag, or other suitable electrically conductivematerial.

In FIG. 3g , a passivation or insulating layer 136 is conformallyapplied over insulating layer 132 and conductive layer 134. Theinsulating layer 136 can be one or more layers of SiO2, Si3N4, SiON,Ta2O5, Al2O3, or other material having suitable insulating andstructural properties. The insulating layer 136 is patterned or blanketdeposited using PVD, CVD, printing, spin coating, sintering with curing,or thermal oxidation.

The structure described in FIGS. 3a-3g , including conductive layers 130and 134 formed over insulating material 128, which is disposed in trench124, are wound or coiled in plan view to produce or exhibit inductiveproperties. FIG. 4a shows the plan view of conductive layer 134 coiledto constitute inductor 138 with 1.5 to 4 turns, 30 μm line width and 150μm inner radius. FIG. 4b shows a cross-sectional view of inductor 138with conductive layers 130 and 134 formed over insulating material 128,which is disposed in trench 124.

Inductor 138 has a given Q factor, which is a measure of efficiency asthe ratio of inductive reactance to resistance at a given frequency. Theinductor 138 has a high Q factor, in the range of 40-45 at 2.45 GHz with80-120 μm deep trench 124. The insulating material 128 formed in trench124 acts as a buffer to isolate conductive layer 130 and 134 fromsubstrate 120 and reduce dissipation losses through the substrate. Thedepth of trench 124, filled with insulating material 128, increases thedistance between conductive layers 130 and 134 and substrate 120. Theinsulating material separation decreases inductive coupling between theconductive layers and lossy substrate, which increases the Q of inductor138. The parasitic capacitance is also reduced with increasing thicknessof insulating material 128 and increasing inductor series resonantfrequency (SRF). Thus, instead of using an expensive high resistancesubstrate for the IPD, a simple inductor IPD for use in RF applicationscan be integrated using a low resistance substrate with a polymer filltrench. The electrical performance or Q is equivalent to that of aninductor Q value in high resistance substrate, providing significantcost savings with equivalent performance.

While one or more embodiments of the present invention have beenillustrated in detail, the skilled artisan will appreciate thatmodifications and adaptations to those embodiments may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention as set forth in thefollowing claims.

What is claimed:
 1. A method of making a semiconductor device,comprising: providing a substrate; forming a trench in the substrate tofollow a coiled path; conformally applying a first insulating layer intothe trench; depositing an insulating material in contact with the firstinsulating layer to fill the trench; forming a first conductive layerover a surface of the insulating material opposite the first insulatinglayer; and forming a second conductive layer over the first conductivelayer as a coil to exhibit an inductive property, the insulatingmaterial in the trench isolating the first conductive layer and secondconductive layer from the substrate.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein adepth of the trench is 10-120 micrometers.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein the insulating material includes a polymer material.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the trench includes tapered sidewalls.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, further including forming a second insulating layerover the first conductive layer.
 6. The method of claim 5, furtherincluding forming a third insulating layer over the second insulatinglayer and the second conductive layer.
 7. A method of making asemiconductor device, comprising: providing a substrate; forming atrench in the substrate to follow a coiled path; conformally applying afirst insulating layer into the trench; depositing an insulatingmaterial in contact with the first insulating layer to fill the trench;and forming a first conductive layer over a surface of the insulatingmaterial as a coil to exhibit an inductive property.
 8. The method ofclaim 7, wherein a depth of the trench is 10-120 micrometers.
 9. Themethod of claim 7, wherein the insulating material includes a polymermaterial.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein the trench includes taperedsidewalls.
 11. The method of claim 7, further including forming a secondinsulating layer over the first conductive layer.
 12. The method ofclaim 11, further including forming a second conductive layer over thefirst conductive layer as a coil to exhibit an inductive property. 13.The method of claim 12, further including forming a third insulatinglayer over the second insulating layer and the second conductive layer.14. A method of making a semiconductor device, comprising: providing asubstrate; forming a trench in the substrate to follow a coiled path;forming a first insulating layer into the trench; depositing aninsulating material in contact with the first insulating layer; andforming a first conductive layer over a surface of the insulatingmaterial as a coil to exhibit an inductive property.
 15. The method ofclaim 14, wherein the trench includes tapered sidewalls.
 16. The methodof claim 14, wherein a depth of the trench is 10-120 micrometers. 17.The method of claim 14, further including forming a second insulatinglayer over the first conductive layer.
 18. The method of claim 17,further including forming a second conductive layer over the firstconductive layer as a coil to exhibit an inductive property.
 19. Themethod of claim 18, further including forming a third insulating layerover the second insulating layer and the second conductive layer.